Club News and Information

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News and Information for Club Members

SOUTHERN TABLELANDS HERITAGE AUTOMOTIVE RESTORERS CLUB

Review of NSW 60 day log book trial

Discussion at the August meeting of the Southern Tablelands Heritage Automotive Restorers Club Inc (STHARC).

Most of the members of STHARC own heritage motor vehicles and with a few exceptions those vehicles are registered under historic vehicle provisions applicable in NSW or ACT. Some of the club vehicles are not eligible for CVS because of modifications and the introduction of the CVS and arrangements made by CHMC to participate in that scheme will help and encourage such members and vehicle owners who have never seen a need to join clubs, to maintain and put heritage motor vehicles back on the road for the community to experience.

The 60 day trial is seen as a positive system for heritage motoring. It allows vehicles which are not usually seen on public roads to be used at times and in places where members of the public might not otherwise see them. Our automotive heritage is a rich one. In Australia, more so than in many other parts of the world, the automobile has been a fundamental tool in the development of our society. Therefore, anything which assists in preserving that heritage for the future is welcome.

In discussion at the meeting it was noted that very few owners on the log book trial manage to use their vehicles anything like 60 days per year. The flexibility to be able to do so outside of club runs is helpful. Particularly with heritage vehicles, there have been civic occasions where owners are asked by local authorities or charity groups to assist as a community service with events, by making their cars available to transport participants with a sense of ceremony, history or heritage, or to add an additional feature to public occasions such as church and school fetes or celebrations. The absence of the need to make special arrangements through the club through which these vehicles are registered, simplifies the process greatly and allows timely acceptance of the requests made.

The log book itself as used for the trial is a vulnerable document. In a permanent scheme, it would be helpful to have a more durable log book. STHARC already requires its members who use H plated vehicles to maintain a log book for club runs. If any new log book introduced by RMS could be drafted to permit runs to identified as 60 day log book or club runs to be recorded within the same log book, either on the same page or in a separate section, it might be helpful. Recording on the same page of the log book, with a column to identify the nature of the use, would probably create less confusion. Provision in the back of the book for details of maintenance and other matters relating to the use of the vehicle which might be relevant to the owners and might enhance the value of the log book to some owners.

In response to the specific questions asked, the following responses are provided:

Yes, the progress the trial to a permanent arrangement on an opt in basis. The option to not participate should ideally remain, to cater for members or clubs for which the 60 day option is not the preferred choice.

No issues arising from the use of the current log book trial were identified apart from the matter of the structure of the log book itself. It was agreed that a half A4 durable hard cover log book would be preferable to a separate loose leaf.

The format of a log book is for many people quite a personal thing. The very basic requirements for the trial are to be welcomed. All that is set out is probably all that is needed. A log book format which complicates this very simple layout may not be welcomed by some users.

The above comments on the flexibility the trial provided for use are relevant. The system has overcome one of the issues some owners have had in obtaining club permission to use H plated vehicles.

The CHMC (Bush Council) Half Yearly General Meeting will be held at Queanbeyan in October 2018, with STHARC as hosts. A STHARC steering committee is required ASAP to formulate a plan for venue, accommodation lists and meals etc. for participates and to make up a flyer by 30th September 2017. Contact STHARC Secretary if you are willing to help.

As discussed at the 7 March meeting, STHARC has made a decision to participate in the CVS. Chris asked at the meeting if STHARC would be prepared to host a regional meeting at which interested clubs and vehicle owners associated with CHMC could meet with officials of CHMC for briefings. There did not seem to be any objection to the idea from those present. Committee should formalize its response to this at its next meeting. Chris suggested that if we are to do something it probably needs to happen in April and the sooner the better.

The hard copy of the documentation is held by myself and is available to any committee member who wants to access it. The documentation attached should be loaded onto our website for members to access.

I am attaching my version of the minutes from tonight’s meeting for consideration and comment. If there are no obvious issues it is the version I intend to treat as the minutes of the meeting for publication in the next newsletter.

Attached is the CVS Club Package that provides the guidelines and documents for registering vehicles on the CVS.

CHMC reiterates that CVS is not compulsory and that your club may not wish to participate and do not intend endorsing applications for CVS registration.

As stated by the CHMC President, CHMC is committed primarily to preservation of the HVS, and is participating in CVS primarily for the benefit of those Clubs which have members with vehicles that do not properly fit within the guidelines for HVS.

Also, CHMC is prepared to conduct regional Forums, the first of which is scheduled to be at Inverell on Saturday April 1, 2017.

Should any Club wish to host or co-host such a forum please contact me as soon as possible.

The Classic Vehicle Scheme (CVS)

CHMC was notified today by email from the RMS that our application to be an Approved Organisation for the issue of Classic Vehicle Scheme registration to financial members of clubs affiliated with the CHMC was granted by RMS. Concurrently with the notification, the RMS website was updated to reflect this approval.

This approval does not mean that all clubs affiliated with CHMC have to take up the CVS. Rather it is a club by club decision. CHMC as an Approved Organisation gives those affiliated clubs the opportunity to access CVS if it is their Club’s decision to do so.

The process CHMC will be adopting differs from that published by ACMC and its affiliates, and will initially not involve the management fee charged by that organisation. CHC is organising the supply to Clubs of the necessary application forms and guidelines for members who wish to participate in CVS.

A further detailed announcement will be provided to all Clubs as soon as this is done, as will arrangements for regional and Clubs visits as proposed in my letter dated 12 December 2016.

Important for Club Members

The Roads & Maritime Services (RMS) introduced the Classic Vehicle Scheme (CVS) on 19 December 2016, that includes standard and modified vehicles weighing no more than 3.5 GVM.

This new scheme does not replace the Historic Vehicle Scheme (HVS) but is a new scheme that allows modified vehicles to be registered on Conditional Registration with all the benefits that such schemes provide for our club members. As with the Historic Vehicle Scheme (HVS), vehicles must be at least 30 years old and the club member must be a financial member of STHARC (which is an approved RMS historic club).

The Classic Vehicle Scheme (CVS) encompasses modifications to eligible vehicles that are within the ambit of RMS VSI 6. Any vehicles that do not meet the RMS VSI 6 must have an engineers’ certificate by a certified VSCCS approved member.

If you believe you have a vehicle eligible for registration under Classic Vehicle Scheme (CVS), whether currently on full registration, on Historic Vehicle Scheme (HVS) or a new registration, do not hesitate to contact the STHARC Registrar to become familiar with the process for Classic Vehicle Scheme (CVS) registration.

The RMS has notified appropriate Councils and Associations that it expects all approved RMS historic club members who may have vehicles that meet the new Classic Vehicle Scheme (CVS) to move across to this scheme. A “period of grace” has been given to members to do this, after which any vehicles found on Historic Vehicle Scheme (HVS) that are found to be modified will incur fines for both the club member and the club.

Wearing of club membership badges

The membership of STHARC has increased by about one third since 2015. This means a lot of new faces and names for existing members and for the new members even more new faces and names. The Committee considered a suggestion from a club member that we should actively encourage members to wear their name badges at club meetings and events. This simple courtesy will help all of us to associate more easily. It was decided that the club will purchase some stick on name tags so that members who have forgotten their badges can be easily identified by other members who do not already know them.

Would club members please make a special effort to wear their club badges to future meetings and events.

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Members. If you missed Jennifer Douglas’s story on the Fergie tractor at Wentworth, (Hazel on Landline) catch up with ABC Open. Click Here.

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UPDATE 11th August 2016 from Council of ACT Motor Clubs Inc.

URGENT Council Communique – August 2016

Official complaint received from RTA about club members offering their vehicles for hire:

It has been brought to the attention of the Road and Traffic Authority (RTA) in the ACT that car club members are advertising their vehicles for paid hire for school formals and weddings. Most advertising is through social media.

Unless the vehicle is accredited to be used as a hire vehicle and the driver holds a W classification on their driver’s licence it is illegal and an offence under section 75 of the Road Transport (Public Passenger Services) Act 1999 for a person to pretend to be accredited to operate a hire car service for reward.

The RTA have advised that inspectors will be actively attending end of year formals to check unlicensed vehicles participating in end of year school formals. Additionally the Authority will be contacting people who place advertisements on social media websites who are not accredited, but advertising their services.

Such behaviour reflects badly on the car club movement and anyone found to be not abiding by the rules and regulations concerning hire vehicles should be ashamed of themselves and their club should take appropriate action to discipline them.

It is not illegal to use a CRS registered vehicle to take friends and relatives to school formals and weddings provided

no fees are charged.

Thank you

If unsure of your circumstance please contact STHARC Committee,

UPDATE 19/10/2015

John Corbett, in his Sunday best, helping out with a FERGUSON FE35 (Gold Belly) Diesel Tractor.

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UPDATE 16/9/2015 “STHARC IS NOW ON FACEBOOK”

I am not a user of social media, but I have been informed a lot of other people are, so I have added a Facebook page to the web site. This may be away of members transferring photos to me for the web site and also a means of passing on information to the events contact prior to runs.

UPDATE 13/9/2015

Club member James Corbett celebrated his 21st Birthday with a party at the Rose Cottage, Gilmore ACT, on the 11th Sep 2015. Congratulations James.

John and Pam Corbett with James(Birthday Boy), Maddie Norton and Grace Corbett

The Speech

The cake

John and Grace Corbett

Contact the Web Master if you have news that will be of interest to members and would like it to be entered on this page.

31st August 2015. WEB UPDATE

All of the previous issues of The Wheel, in digital format, that I have access to have been added to the Web Site on The Wheel Page.

The Old Wheel Magazines missingare as follows:

2001 Not sure of start month. October could be issue #1?Oct Nov Dec

2002 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

2003 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep

2006 Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

2007 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

2008 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul

2010 Sep Dec

2011 Jan Feb Mar Dec

2012 Jun Jul Aug

2014 Jul

If you happen to have a digital copy of one or more of these issues on your computer, please contact me and I will arrange to get it off you.